Why is Chappell Roan even trying to be a famous pop star?

She is also not scared to say what she thinks, challenging the entrenched norms and traditions of the cobweb music industry. There is appeal in that type of star, something refreshing. They revel in imperfections. Perhaps sometimes they say, gasp, the wrong things. They’re certainly not taking personality cues from suits working to distil their essence into profit. They are, for all extents and purposes, themselves.

Roan appears in a space where most are forced to repress their thoughts and feelings in case the well-curated image that sells tour tickets crumbles. But Roan has a different problem. Many are wondering if her PR team even exists.

Her repeated criticisms of her newfound fame have found little sympathy from those who see an entitled starlet who should expect what comes with the territory. Conversely, her newly obsessed fans frame it as willing change into a predatory celebrity culture.

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A recent round of interviews reveals the peculiar attitude she has surrounding her fame, parlaying bad fan interactions and celebrity harassment into the role of “an abusive ex-husband”.

“I feel like fame is just abusive. The vibe of this – stalking, talking shit online, [people who] won’t leave you alone, yelling at you in public – is the vibe of an abusive ex-husband. That’s what it feels like. I didn’t know it would feel this bad,” she rather obliviously told The Face.

For all the glitz and glam, fame is hard, and it’s never what it’s cracked up to be – but it’s not a life accidentally gained as a rising pop star. And in the commercial music industry, it’s mandatory to play the game and abide by certain rules, whether Roan likes it or not.

Her attitude appears entitled because it’s self-serving, and we already allow famous people the kind grace to be freely self-serving. The life of an anonymous worker or even operating as an artist outside the commercial realm away from constant attention were always options.

She has taken to her large TikTok following to express similar sentiments about fame, saying in one video: “If you saw a random woman in the street, would you yell at her from the car window? Would you harass her in public? Would you go up to a random lady and say, ‘Can I get a photo with you?’ and she’s like ‘No, what the f***,’ and then you get mad at this random lady?”

No, I would not do that if I saw a random woman in the street, but has anyone told Roan she’s not just a random woman in the street? Just the concept of fame alone seems to confuse her. That people want to be near her, grab her attention, and are attracted to her star power isn’t some bizarre phenomenon like she attempts to paint it as.

@chappellroan

Do not assume this is directed at someone or a specific encounter. This is just my side of the story and my feelings.

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“This is the time when a few years ago when I said that if [there were] stalker vibes or my family was in danger, I would quit. And we’re there. We’re there!” she told the Comment Section podcast. “I’m just kind of in this battle… I’ve pumped the brakes on, honestly, anything to make me more known,” she added. That seemingly does not apply to the smaller pre-fame booked concerts that she cancelled to perform at the MTV Video Music Awards (in which she also took home Best New Artist).

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That Roan acts like there was no pursuit involved in the kind of fame she’s acquired is naïve at best, and disingenuous at worst. She seems to think if she limits her public output then the beast of fame can be somewhat tamed. But the commercial forces surrounding her, desperate to capitalise off her immense popularity, will make it very difficult for her to do that. As the next big thing, they will always want more, and it's a demand almost impossible to refuse.

Fans who support her will say that artistic expression is her number one concern and that fame and success are ancillary, but fame and success are not prerequisites to artistic expression. There are other ways art can operate, and there is a weird, tired assumption that making it in the commercial music industry is the only true path.

Which begs the question, why strive for fame at all? Why execute every task imaginable in the pursuit just to act sour at the obvious downsides? To what end is her career in popular music? She doesn’t seem to have the answers. It could simply be a case of buyer’s remorse.